Making the Most of Things
by comic-book-girl
Summary: It was the summer of '09, the summer that changed everything. I'd always hated the thought of anything changing. But that one summer, made me realize that change isn't always a bad thing, and that you can make the most out of any situation. Loliver.
1. The Changes and Goodbyes

**Hello young readers/writers on the fanfiction variety. Um, I just couldn't get this story out of my head, so I just decided to start it. But I am finishing Stranded Lovers. I'm halfway through writing the next chapter. Let's just hope I can write two stories at the same time... This is in Lilly's POV just so ya know. Hope you like it.**

Making the Most of Things

Chapter 1

It's funny how fast some things can change, whether it for the better or the worse. In my case, it was a little of both. Well, more than a little, I'd say.

I mean, here I was, sitting on the edge of the curb at midnight, rain pouring down on my slightly curled blonde hair and little black dress, my mascara running down my cheeks. Pathetic, huh? But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's start at the beginning.

It was the summer of '09, the summer that changed everything.

We had just finished sophomore year of high school and things seemed to be looking up for the most part. When I say "we", I mean my best friend, Oliver, and I. We hadn't been seeing much of Miley, my other best friend, lately. The older she got, the more her career as pop sensation, Hannah Montana, took off.

She'd be gone from school for days at a time. Oliver and I'd see her every few days or so. We'd hang out for a while and then watch Miley walk out the door toward fame and fortune. Oliver and I'd be bummed for awhile, but as time went on, we eventually got over it and learned toaccept the fact that Miley had to move on to "bigger and better things." Not that I thought they were better, just a little fatter maybe.

So when summer came, Miley headed off on an all-summer concert tour and left us in Malibu, not that there was anything wrong with being stuck in Malibu. Who wanted to leave anyway? The surf… the sand… what more could you ask for in a summer? But it was harder to "accept the fact" that Miley was leaving for more than just a few days.

Anyway, Miley wasn't the only thing that was changing. Everyone around us seemed to be. Oliver and I tried our hardest to keep everything as it always was, but somehow it never did any good.

Our once called friends were getting drunk every night and high everyday, going to parties and causing trouble everywhere they went. And my other few gal friends started, um, "getting around". While the kids we once shared Playdoh with in Pre-K stuffed cigarettes in their mouths, Oliver and I had root beer-flavored lollipops crammed in ours.

It was like the whole world had gone insane. Or maybe it was just Oliver and I. Were we the only one's who wanted things to stay the same? It was hard to tell anymore. But whatever had happened to the world that year, was slowly starting to affect us, but in the way we least expected.

xxx

"Bye Miley." I said, hugging my pop star friend goodbye. "I'm really going to miss you."

"Bye Lilly." She said, hugging me back. "I'm gonna miss you more. But I won't be gone forever, just for the summer. We can get through it. You don't need me to have fun. You can do anything you want to do."

"I know." I said back, even though I didn't think so.

I gave her an encouraging smile as she hugged Oliver goodbye. I watched as she slowly walked over to her black stretch limo and stepped inside. She closed the door and rolled the window down. I walked over to the window, a single tear rolling down my cheek.

"Why do you have to go, Miley? The summer won't be the same without you."

She gave me a half smile and hugged me again.

"Lilly, this summer can be anything you want it to be. Make the most of it." She said, putting her hand on my shoulder.

I nodded and backed away slowly, standing next to Oliver. Miley winked at me and waved goodbye as the limo slowly pulled away, off into the horizon, like some corny movie.

I wiped the tear from my cheek and turned to Oliver. He smiled at me. I smiled back slowly.

"Want to go to the beach?" He asked calmly, looking at me.

I nodded and we walked slowly down the sidewalk, Miley's words repeating over and over in my head.

_This summer can be anything you want it to be. Make the most of it…_

**Was it good? Bad? Let me know with review please. I should definately be updating this more often than last time... I can assure you that. **

**-Andrea-**


	2. Rock Bottom

**hello. chapter 2. i actually did it. almost done with the next chapter of stranded lovers. writer's block is killer...**

Chapter 2

"Lilly, you haven't touched your drink…" Oliver said, picking up a fry and popping it into his mouth.

"Oh…" I replied, staring down at the table at _Rico's_,never wanting to move my eyes. "Sorry…"

"Lilly, I know you're upset about Miley leaving but it's not the end of the world." Oliver replied, tilting his head to see my face since I refused look up.

"It's not just that…" I said, my eyes drifting around, looking at all the commotion on the beach going on around us. "Everything's changing…and I don't know if I like it." I grabbed a fry and stuck it into my mouth, chewing angrily.

"Lils, everything has to come to an end eventually. Well, almost everything. We have to learn to accept it. Life goes on… I'm kind of tired of trying so hard to keep _everything_ exactly the same."

I sighed and took a sip of my drink.

"Let's go home." I said, getting up from the table. I picked up my soda and thrust it at Oliver. He took it and took a drink, before spitting it back out into the sand.

"Ugh… Lilly, you always were the queen of backwash." He said grinning. He threw the cup of soda across the beach and watched it land in the trashcan.

"Two points!" He said, raising his arms up in the air. I rolled my eyes. He poked me in the side and got an "eep" out of me.

The whole way home all he did was try to cheer me up. Oh, the knock-knock jokes he told… pure torture. Like I haven't heard the one about seven eating nine… I mean, really…

We arrived to our street. We'd lived next door to each other since preschool. He walked me to the door. I hugged the goofball and waltzed inside, slamming the door behind me.

My mom apparently wasn't home yet. The house was too quiet. She was usually banging things around in every direction without even noticing she was annoying the neighbors.

I walked up the long, wooden steps to my room, or as it should be called, my sanctuary. I opened my bedroom door and instantly felt a little better. Home sweet home for sure…

I ripped my scarred, red cell phone out of my jeans pocket and plugged it into the wall. The annoying, 3-second tune it played let me know it was charging. I jumped on my bed and grabbed the remote for my stereo, hitting play, drowning my sorrows in Green Day's _Wake Me Up When September Ends_.

I put my hands behind my head, as I lied back on my fuzzy, blue pillow I got for my twelth birthday. I stared at the ceiling. There are one hundred and thirty tiles in it. I counted, and not just taking the length times the width. I actually counted every tile individually. There's one hundred and thirty.

I reached over toward my nightstand with my right hand and pulled out my bottle of green nail polish. I have this thing called the nail polish scale. It's stupid really, but I don't really care. However I feel determines what color I paint them. For example, if I were feeling really happy, I'd probably use light pink or yellow, some bright color. If I'm feeling really bad I might use navy blue or black. In other words, the darker the color the lousier I feel.

In my book, green is pretty darn close to the lousy side, which was how I was feeling. I sat up and leaned back. I opened the bottle and began to paint away.

"Maybe if I'm lucky, the fumes will kill me." I thought. "At least I'd die peacefully on my fuzzy, blue pillow…"

**that chapter was pretty boring but the next will have more loliver in it. i'll update tommorrow. seriously...**

**-Andrea-**


	3. Fun in a Bag

**chapter 3 peoples. i'm actually updating everyday. i'm very surprised... and thank you so much for reviewing you kind people. **

Chapter 3

I'm not sure how long I was asleep, but it was definitely a while because when I finally awoke, my phone was done charging, my CD had ended and my green nails were dry. I sat up and looked around. The clock read a little after noon. I must have been really tired from waking up at six that morning that say goodbye to Miley.

I yawned and unplugged my cell phone from the wall. It played an annoying tune and I threw it on my bed. I put my hands on my hips and looked at my lime green curtains. I walked over to them and thrust them open, letting the afternoon sun pour through. I squinted and let myself fall backwards onto my bed.

"Ow…" I groaned, reaching under me and un-wedging my cell phone from my back. I wanted to throw it at the wall as hard as I could, but I knew that would be pretty pointless. Just then it rang.

_I feel like a hero and you are my heroine…_

I reached out and answered it, without bothering to see who it was. It was Oliver. Who else would it be?

"Hey." I said, staring up at the ceiling. "What do you want?"

"Is that anyway to talk to your best friend who brought cookies?" Oliver asked.

I sighed and stood up. "Where are you anyway?"

"Outside. Now let me in." He replied. "I brought my bag of fun."

I groaned. "Anything but the bag of fun…" I whined.

"Just open the door, you crazy psycho." He chuckled.

I sighed again and left my room, walked down the stairs and opened the door, exposing Oliver wearing his helmet and carrying his skateboard, his cell phone and a big brown sack labeled "fun" with magic marker.

I rolled my eyes and stepped aside, allowing him to come in. He strolled over to the living room, dropped his skateboard and bag of fun on the floor and jumped on the couch.

I shook my head and stared at him, my hands on my hips. He patted a spot on the couch and grinned, his shaggy brown hair falling in his eyes. I shrugged and plopped down on the couch beside him.

"So…" I said, leaning back. "What do you have in store for us today?"

"I thought you'd never ask…" He replied, leaning down and pulling up the huge brown sack. He smiled at me and looked down at my nails.

"Green, huh?" He asked. I nodded.

"I'll fix that." He said and began pulling things out of the bag. He knew all about my nail polish scale. I had been doing it for a while now.

I stared at the coffee table in front of us as he began to pile it up with random goodies; cookies, microwave popcorn, a 2 liter bottle of Mountain Dew, three DVDs, a giant pack of paper, a school box full of crayons, markers, pens and pencils, and half of his CD collection.

It was always amazing how he came up with things like this. Ever since I first met him, he always had some weird scheme cooked up to make me feel better.

He grinned at me, his hair falling in his eyes again. It always seemed to do that when he smiled. I looked up at him and saw my reflection in his eyes. I looked really sad. And the worst part was, I didn't really know why. Miley leaving wouldn't make me_ this_ depressed.

But the thing about Oliver was that I really liked, was that he didn't always ask. He knew that I didn't always want to talk about my feelings. Just knowing that I was sad was enough to make him run over here with a bag of uplifting junk. He kept grinning at me until I couldn't possibly refuse his strange invitation, not that I wasn't used to his weird invites.

I rolled my eyes and smiled. "I'll make the popcorn…"

**hope that was pretty good. i'll update tommorrow for sure. seriously. unless i get grounded or something... review please.**

**-Andrea-**


	4. Clocks are Evil

**Next chapter... i like this one the best so far, but that's just me. idk. hope it's ok. thanks so much for reviewing. **

Chapter 4

If there's one thing I've learned in my short lifetime, it's that it's quite difficult to sleep with a lot on your mind or a lot in your stomach, both of which I now acquired. A bag of popcorn and a shaggy-haired boy are two things you would never even think to associate together. But I guess I'm just one of the weird people in this world.

As I lied there in the dark, snuggled under my purple and black bedspread, I stared up at the ceiling, something I had been doing a lot lately. I just couldn't understand it. Why was I feeling so bad? Why did I feel like the world was ending? When I wasn't thinking about the world ending I was thinking about Oliver. When I wasn't thinking about Oliver, I was thinking about my stomachache. Oliver had told me not to eat so much popcorn. I never listened.

Part of me wanted to open my window, stick my head out and scream as loud as I could that the world sucked. Part of me wanted to crawl up next to my mom in her bed and tell her my tummy hurt. But I just lied there, staring at the ceiling. When I stared at it long enough, I felt like I was spinning. I turned over and screamed into my pillow.

I tilted my head slightly and look at the clock, 3:41 am. I groaned, grabbed my pillow tighter and stared at the clock, waiting for it to change. I promised myself I wouldn't look away until it did. It seemed like forever I stared at that thing, like time just stopped. It was never going to change.

I looked at the ceiling, then back at the clock, still no change. I threw the covers off of me, grabbed my 20-dollar digital clock and ripped the plug out from the wall. I walked over to my bedroom window and opened it, letting the night's cool breeze pour through and blow my lime green curtains. I stared out the window and looked at the moon. I looked at Oliver's house. All the lights were off. He was probably sleeping like a baby. Popcorn never did give him a stomachache.

The cool air chilled my body. I was only wearing pajama shorts and a tank top. I grabbed my robe and put it on before sitting on the edge of my windowsill. I picked up my clock and threw it out the window, waiting patiently for the expected crash. I felt like letting out an evil laugh when I heard it hit a metal trash can with a loud bang. I suddenly saw a light go on in the Oken house, Oliver's room. Maybe I should have aimed better.

Our houses aren't too far apart so I could see Oliver's confused expression as he stuck his head out his window and looked at me.

"Lilly, what the heck is going on?" He asked, whispering.

"Nothing. I just can't sleep." I whispered back, still sitting on my window.

"Well, did you have to wake up the entire neighborhood because of it?" He asked, leaning against his window, his brown hair falling in his eyes.

"Sorry…" I mumbled. "My stomach hurts from the popcorn."

"I told you not to eat so much." He said smiling.

"You're the one who brought it." I defended. "You and your stupid bag of fun…"

"Hey, you used to love the bag of fun." He said, leaning further out the window.

"Yeah, then I turned four."

He smiled and looked up at the sky. I could see the reflection of the moon in his eyes. His eyes glistened too much…

"You know what we're going to do tomorrow?" He asked, staring at me.

"What?" I asked leaning forward, my tangled hair falling with me.

"We're gonna bake a cake." He declared.

I gave him a weird look and chuckled. "Whatever…" I said shaking my head.

"Well we are…" He said back. "Even if I have to climb through your window with a box of cake mix and an empty, plastic bowl."

I smiled and hopped down. "See you tomorrow." I said, shutting my window. He blew me a kiss jokingly and closed his. I waited until I saw his blinds go down and light shut off before closing my lime green curtains. Just then my phone made an annoying sound. I picked it up and opened it. There was a text message from Oliver. There's a surprise… I read it as I stood in the middle of my room.

_Why did Lilly throw the clock out the window? Because she wanted to see time fly…_

There was no keeping secrets from Oliver. Whatever it was, no matter how stupid, he almost always figured it out. I groaned, shut my phone and flopped back into my bed, falling asleep with a smile the second my head hit my fuzzy blue pillow.

**i'll most likely update tommorrow. i don't want to destroy my pattern... haha. review please.**

**-Andrea-**


	5. Uplifting Cake Batter

**Hey. Sorry I didn't update yesterday. So much for my streak. haha. I had a lot of homework and the whole day was just crazy. I had the chapter actually written out in my notebook, but i didn't have time to proofread it and i had some things to change on it and i didn't have time to type it up... etc. etc...**

Chapter 5

The next morning gave me sort of a rude awakening. Well, the morning didn't. Mr. you-know-who did. I was extremely tired from staying up so late. Plus I didn't exactly have my alarm clock anymore to wake me up…

I was sleeping soundly, curled up in my little bed. I couldn't have been cozier. I started stirring when I felt someone poke me. I laughed but didn't open my eyes, until I got poked again. My eyes shot open and I screamed for half a second before realizing it was Oliver, sitting on my bed with a goofy expression plastered on his face.

"Don't scare me like that." I yelled, sitting up and pushing my bangs out of my eyes.

"Sorry…" He said laughing. "I didn't know you'd freak out on me."

I rolled my eyes. "What are you doing here anyway?" I asked, crossing my legs.

"Don't you remember?" He asked. "We're baking a cake."

I sighed. "Oh yeah…" I replied. "Let me get dressed." I stood up and pushed him out the door.

"Out…out…" I said, pushing Oliver and closing the door behind him. I looked around my room. I walked over to my closet and opened the door, letting mounds of clothes I forgot were there, come flying out all over me and the floor. My soccer ball rolled off my top shelf and hit me in the head. I groaned and kicked it under my bed. I rummaged through my closet and the pile of clothes and pulled out a t-shirt and a pair of black capri pants. I put them on and didn't bother to brush my hair. I wasn't in the mood. And frankly, I didn't care.

I brushed my teeth and put on my black sneakers. They're ripped in five places but I can't seem to throw them out. I just duct tape them. They're too lucky to get rid of. I walked downstairs and saw Oliver lying on the couch with his feet propped up. He was watching cartoons.

"Nice hair, Miss Bedhead." He said laughing.

"Where's my mom?" I asked him, ignoring his comment.

"She left." He said. "Something about a meeting at work…"

"Oh." I said, walking over to him.

"Oh, and she gave me a key to the house." He said, raising it up in the air. "You know, considering I lost the last five you gave me…"

"That's wonderful. Now you can wake me up early every morning." I said sarcastically. I walked over to the kitchen and hopped up on the counter. I reached up over my head and started pulling out measuring cups and spoons and other cooking junk.

Oliver got up and walked over to the kitchen. He jumped up on the counter and slid down it next to me, nearly knocking me over in the process. He swung his legs from atop the counter, his hair falling in his eyes.

"Whatcha doin'?" He asked, smiling at me.

"What does it look like I'm doing? If we have to bake a cake of all things, we might as well do it right."

He chuckled and hopped down. "That's the spirit, Lils." He said, giving me a thumbs-up and a dorky smile.

"Should we make it from scratch or use a cake mix?" I asked, standing in the middle of the kitchen.

We looked at each other. "Cake mix." We said in unison.

I climbed up on the opposite countertop (who needs a stepstool anyway?) and found a box of chocolate cake mix. I hopped down and began reading the back of the box. I grabbed a bowl and began throwing the thing together. Oliver measured the water and started flicking it at me. I covered my face and started racing around the kitchen. I poured the powdery contents of the plastic bag from the cake mix into the bowl. I poured it in too fast and a bunch of it puffed up out of the bowl and went everywhere. I dusted some out of my hair and continued.

After I had finished putting everything into the bowl, I handed it to Oliver and he poured it into the mixer.

"Be careful not to turn it on too-"

Everything started flying out of the mixer, chocolate stuff everywhere.

"-high…"

"The switch…slipped…" Oliver said, covered in chocolate. I stared at him and shook my head, looking around the kitchen. We had our work cut out for us. We finished mixing the remains of the cake. Well, I did, and poured it into a pan. I shoved it in the oven and slammed the door shut.

"That went well…" I said.

"Could have been worse…" Oliver said, looking around.

I took off my oven mitt and throw it at him. I leaned back against the oven door and slid down to the floor, my legs stretching out and my arms falling limp around me. Oliver sat down on the floor next to me and yawned. I looked at him.

"You wouldn't be tired if you had slept in and let me sleep in too." I said looking around at the huge mess we had made.

I looked at Oliver and smiled. He was covered in chocolate from head to toe, but then again, so was I. He looked back and grinned like he always did. His hair would have fell in his eyes, but some of the cake batter had hardened and was making most of his hair stick up on end like he had used some weird, brown, hair gel. I kept looking at him and suddenly burst out into a laughing fit. I couldn't stop. It was the first time I _really_ laughed in what seemed like forever. Oliver gave me a confused look and then started laughing too. Apparently, laughter_ is _contagious. After about ten minutes of hysterics, we finally settled down.

"You know Oliver…" I said. "You have some pretty stupid ideas, but I do love them." He grinned and looked down.

"I just wanted to do something fun." He said. "You know, since you were sad about Miley leaving and everything."

I nodded. "Thanks." I said. "I had fun. And you know what? I've decided that I'm not going to be sad anymore."

"Is that something you can just decide?" He asked, looking at me.

"I don't know." I replied. "But I'm going to find out. Besides, you and I used to have oodles of fun before we even met Miley. Why shouldn't we have just as much fun when she's not here? It'll be like things used to be…"

He smiled. It was quiet for a few minutes.

"I brought you your clock…" Oliver said, pointing over to the coffee table in the living room. I glanced over and saw my alarm clock, lying there in three pieces. I rolled my eyes and smiled. He looked at me and suddenly started laughing again.

"What?" I asked, looking confused.

"You have chocolate on your nose…"

**Eh... I liked it for the most part. Could have been better. I want to know what you think so review please. I can't promise I'll update tommorrow because I'm going to my dad's and his computer is screwed up big time... but i do promise that i won't go like weeks without updating... i'll probably continue on saturday...**

**-Andrea-**


	6. The Park and the Paperclips

**Hey. Sorry i didn't update this weekend. I just never got a good chance to. I like this chapter for the most part, but I still think it could be better. Thanks for reviewing last chapter.**

Chapter 6

I slept soundly that night, better than I had in a long time. I conked out around nine because I was so tired from the night before, and got up around seven. I yawned and sat up, looking around my room. I smiled and remembered that I had to make the summer wonderful, no matter what.

I jumped out of bed, showered and got dressed. I stared at myself in the mirror. I pushed my hair this way and that, wondering what looked best. I never did like how I looked, but Miley always assured me that I was gorgeous and not to doubt myself, but I never listened. I put my hair behind my ears and then moved it back. I tried to put my hair up, but it didn't look too good. I never liked doing my hair. If only my hats weren't buried in my closet…

I shrugged and ran downstairs, deciding that it didn't matter what I looked like. I had to have fun. I just had to. I walked over to the kitchen and saw my mom sitting at the table in her robe, reading the newspaper and drinking coffee. I walked over to her and greeted her with a "Hey" before strolling over to the counter and helping myself to a piece of burnt chocolate cake. Need I explain?

I poured myself a glass of milk and sat down at the table as I stuffed a bite of cake in my mouth. I chewed with my cheeks puffing out as I read the comics. I started laughing at a _Garfield_ comic but my mouth was full, so I sounded like some angry wild animal. My mom lowered her newspaper and looked at me with a weird expression.

"You ok?" She asked, laughing. "Do I need to call 911?"

"No Mom…" I said, swallowing my cake. It didn't taste too bad considering how burned it was. I finished and chugged my milk down.

"Must you have cake for breakfast?" Mom asked, shaking her head.

I nodded and hopped up from the table. I grabbed and apple and took a bite, thrusting it into my mom's face.

"There." I said. "I'm eating healthy."

She shook her head. "So what are you and Oliver doing today?" she asked, still staring at her newspaper.

"I don't know…" I said. "I'm sure he has something weird in mind…"

I jogged around the room and did jumping jacks. I felt energized. I ran out the door and didn't stop until I was on Oliver's front steps. I finished my apple and threw it in his yard. He wouldn't care. Maybe an apple tree will grow. I knocked on the door and stretched my arms. I was ready to do something. Oliver answered the door and smiled.

"Hey Lils." He said. "Come on in." I walked in and collapsed on his couch putting my feet up. Oliver looked sleepy and his hair was messed up. Oh, how the tables have turned…

"Come on. Get dressed." I said. "What do you have in store for us today?"

He yawned and put his finger up, telling me to wait. He walked upstairs and disappeared. I turned on his TV and flipped through the channels. I got bored, and finding that there was nothing on, started walking around his house. He always took a long time to get ready. It didn't matter that he was a guy.

He finally came walking down the steps, yawning the entire way. I jumped up and down and grabbed his arm.

"What. Are. We. Doing. Today?" I asked again.

He smiled and said, "Bike riding."

I smiled back. Exercise, just what I wanted.

I ran back to my house and grabbed my bicycle. I met Oliver outside and we hopped on our bikes, riding down the street without a care in the world.

I felt like I was flying when I rode my bike. The wind blew my hair back and the cool breeze hit my face. I never let my mom know I don't wear my helmet. I took a deep breath and sighed happily. This was the life. So far my plan was working out. I felt great. Now I just had to get Oliver back into his peppy mood again.

I zoomed ahead on my bike and glanced back to see Oliver huffing and puffing to catch up with me. I laughed. He never would have if it weren't for that stoplight.

I kept riding and riding. I felt so free… like I could do anything I wanted to. The world was mine to do what I wanted with it. I finally stopped at the park next to all the playground equipment. I grinned and threw my bicycle down. I ran up the park and twirled around in a circle, stretching my arms out. I closed my eyes and felt like I was flying.

When I finally opened them, Oliver was staring at me. I grinned and challenged him to a race to the swings. I took off and he ran after me, his face red. I guess I got him up to early. I love karma.

I made it to the swings before him and jumped on one. I stood up on it, my hands gripping the chain and looked around, my eyes wide. I sat down on it and began to swing as fast as I could. Oliver sat down on the swing beside me and pushed off. I kept swinging until I was as high as the big oak tree next to the swing set. I slowed down a little and jumped off mid-swing. I landed in the grass and rolled. I sighed and stretched my arms out, staring up at the clouds. I love the playground. You're never too old for it, no matter what anyone says.

I looked up and saw Oliver fly off his swing and land in the grass next to me with a thud, his hair falling in his eyes. He lied down next to me and looked up at the blue sky.

"What's that one look like to you?" He asked, pointing to a cloud.

"I don't know. I think maybe a house or something…" I said staring at the sky. "What about that one?"

"Hmm… it looks like those things you take your nail polish off with…" He replied.

"You mean a cotton ball?" I asked, staring at him.

"Yeah, a cotton ball."

"Oliver, they _all_ look like cotton balls. They're clouds."

He smiled. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. There was nothing like lying in the grass. The simplest things are so often overlooked.

I sat up and pushed my bangs over my head. He sat up too. His hair fell in his eyes. I reached in my pocket and found a stick of gum, a quarter and two paper clips. I got on my knees and grabbed Oliver's bangs in my right hand. I snatched one of the paper clips and stuck it in Oliver's hair, letting it hold his bangs up. He gave me a weird look. He grabbed the other paper clip and pinned my bangs up too.

"If I can't have my hair in my eyes, neither can you." He said smiling.

I looked at him. He looked so funny with the paper clip in his hair, but then again I was sure I looked just as weird. I stood up and brushed my pants off. I walked over to the swings again and sat down on one again. Oliver came over chewing my gum. He stuck my quarter in his pocket.

"Hey…" I said. "Those were mine."

"Were", being the key word here…" He said grinning.

I sighed and drew a circle I the sand, underneath my swing, with my foot. I twisted my swing around in a circle and let it go. I spun around and around. I hadn't done that in forever. When it finally stopped, I smiled and wrote my name in the sand with my foot. I hopped up off the swing and walked over to the slide. I climbed up to the top and slid down, the metal scorching the bare parts of my legs. I stood up and walked over to the jungle gym. I jumped up and began making my way across. Oliver came over and stood staring at me.

A little girl with frizzy, red hair stopped swinging on the monkey bars and looked at me.

"Your hair looks stupid like that." She said, wrinkling her nose.

"And yours looks like an ugly bush." I said sticking my tongue out at her. I need to grow up.

The girl frowned and squinted her eyes. "I'm gonna tell on you." She said before running toward her mother, yelling "Mommy, Mommy!"

I jumped down and grabbed Oliver's hand.

"Time to go!" I said, pulling him toward our bikes.

We jumped on them and rode off, without a care in the world. Oliver looked at me and shook his head.

"Very mature..." He said laughing.

I rolled my eyes and grinned as we flew down the street, not even noticing when the paper clips flew out of our hair and into the breeze.

**Review please. I'll try to update soon. ( :**

**-Andrea-**


	7. Silence Never Lasts

**really sorry i didn't update. i kind of lost track of time... hope you like this chapter. thanks for reviewing last time.**

Chapter 7

Silence. It's one the most disturbing things, but yet one of the greatest. I lay on my bed, painting a thin coat of pink polish on my fingernails. I felt overjoyed. Maybe it was some sort of weird high from the nail polish or some other peculiar smell pouring in from my open window, but whatever the reason, I was happy.

Maybe the quiet was getting to me. I looked around. Nothing but my piles of junk scattered across the great abyss that is my room. I really needed to tidy up. I had gotten so lazy lately.

I finished applying the pig-colored, poison liquid to my pinky and closed the bottle. I smiled. It was now time to attack the spinning vortex of clothes, shoes, papers and whatever else that was occupying the space that my yellow beanbag should be taking up, without getting sucked inside in the process.

I blew on my nails and tapped my foot. I couldn't start until they were dry. But I was pumped. If I had to wait any longer, I wouldn't feel like cleaning anymore. I continued to drum the floor with my foot, before hopping up and darting down the hall to my mom's room. I stepped inside, taking in the familiar smell of potpourri, vanilla candles and cherry-flavored Lifesavers. Some things never change.

I stepped onto the avocado-colored carpet and walked over to her dresser. After opening several drawers, trying not to smear my fingers, I found my mother's battery-powered nail dryer. I grinned and grabbed the contraption, before flopping down on her bed and pressing my hand into the tiny, round opening.

After about two or three minutes, my nails were dry and I gently threw the thing on my mom's pillow. I sat cross-legged on the bed, staring down at the green bedspread that matched the avocado carpet. I slid off and walked out the door. All that avocado stuff was making me want guacamole.

I stared down the steps on my way past them as I headed back to my room. The house was so quiet and empty. I loved it that way but yet it left me with a sense of fear and loneliness. I never could make up my mind, about anything. But there were many pros of staying home alone. I could sing at the top of my lungs and no one could hear me. I could burst out into random dance moves and no one would be there to see my shame. I chuckled and stepped into my room.

I stood in the middle of my room, looking around. I cracked my knuckles.

"Let's do this thing." I said to myself.

I waded through the area of junk near my closet and began to sort through it. I picked up some dirty t-shirts and threw them across the room into my hamper. I sat down and began crawling through the giant pile. I dug down deeper until I was almost completely covered by the giant heap. I lied back and closed my eyes. I took a deep breath, and instantly regretted it after taking in the smell of, well, dirtiness. I continued to lie there, but took slow, small breaths. I felt calm and serene.

I almost drifted off to sleep, but I felt someone grab my legs that were sticking out of the pile. I jumped and threw the random items off me, coming face to face with Oliver.

I sighed and put my hand to my chest, trying to get my heart rate to go back to normal. It always jumped when I got scared and it wasn't always easy to calm down again.

"Hey." He said, grinning like no tomorrow.

"Don't scare me like that."

"What are you doing?" He asked, ignoring my comment.

"I'm cleaning my room." I said yawning.

"Looks to me like you're drowning in it." He said chuckling.

I tried not to laugh but, sure enough, I couldn't hold it in. He smiled happily. He seemed to enjoy being able to make me laugh. Now that I think about it, he always did. At least he was peppier than he had been this morning.

I smiled again and hugged my knees. I looked at him. Sure enough, his hair was in his eyes again.

"We lost our paper clips back at the park." I said, not noticing until that moment.

"Oh yeah." He replied. He grabbed his bangs in his right hand and began looking around my room. He spotted a clothespin clipped to an old bag of potato chips. He snickered. He grabbed the potato chip bag and ripped the clothespin off it. He stuck it in his hair and grinned.

"Nice." I said sarcastically. He looked like such a dork, but a very cute dork. My stomach lurched and I shook the thought from my head.

He began devouring the potato chips.

"Those were mine…" I whined.

"'Were', being the key word here." He replied, smirking.

I rolled my eyes. He always did that, whether it was my gum, my quarter, or even my darn chips.

"Give me one." I said, grabbing the bag. I chewed quickly as I looked around my room. "Why do you always appear out of nowhere?" I asked, staring out in space.

"I don't know. I like the element of surprise." He moved his eyebrows up and down and popped another chip in his mouth.

"Oliver, nothing personal, but get out of here." I said chuckling.

"Who, me?" He asked, pretending to look shocked. His mouth was stuffed with chips. "I want to help you clean your room."

"Fine…whatever." I lied back onto the junk pile and stared up at the ceiling. "There are one hundred and thirty tiles in my ceiling…" I mumbled to myself.

"Huh?"

"Nothing…" I mumbled again.

I took a deep breath and smiled, talking in the smell of dirty laundry, potato chips, and Oliver's recently shampooed hair.

**i thought that was ok. i know this thing is just dragged on and on but i like it like that. let me know what you think. review please. **

**-Andrea-**


	8. July's Boatload

Chapter 8

Let's just start off by saying that _Cleaning the Great Abyss: Lilly Edition_ didn't work out as well as planned. We got sidetracked by shiny objects and soon forgot mission impossible. But why do today what you can put off 'till tomorrow?

In recap, the month of June consisted of sad goodbyes, nail polish, the bag of fun, cake baking and the destruction of innocent and perfectly good electronics. But what else would you expect, considering I'm spending all my time with Oliver?

The summer lingered on. July soon came and brought along with it a boatload of drama. Oliver's birthday was in July, July 15th, to be exact. He was turning 16. Soon he would be driving, a very scary thought on my part.

Ever since about 6th grade, Oliver and I'd decided that we were sick of huge birthday parties with tons of screaming kids around. We wanted something quiet and calm for our birthdays, at least Oliver and I did. Miley, on the other hand, was a different story with her huge holiday bashes.

Anyway, we invented, and I quote, "The Birthday of all Birthdays Bash". This alliteration concluded of non-stop movie watching, junk food eating, story telling, music listening, and all around, with just the three of us,fun. This year the only thing I expected to be different was the fact that Miley wasn't here to enjoy it with us. Little did I know how wrong I was.

I smiled as I walked down the sidewalk, my sneakers scraping it the entire way. "Heal, toe, heal, toe…" I repeated in my head. Everyone always told me I walked funny, like some sort of duck, and that I needed to stop slapping the ground when I walked. I bit my lip and tried to think of something else.

The wind blew my hair and I took in a deep breath, sighing as I closed my eyes. I wasn't sure where I was going. I just wanted to go somewhere, anywhere. Maybe if I stopped concentrating, my legs would just take me someplace. I continued, "slapping" down the slightly wet pavement. It had just rained and you could still feel the moisture in the air.

I glanced over and saw "Saint Sarah" making out with her biology partner in his truck. I forgot his name but Miley called him something like the "hottie with the swimmer's body." I cringed and fast walked away from there. So much for the "Saint" part of her name… Was I the only one noticing the constant changes going on? It sure seemed like it.

I proceeded with my walk, trying to shake the image of Sarah from my mind. I made it to the beach and took in the smell of the salty air. I spotted Oliver sitting at the counter drinking a soda. Jackson's temporary replacement was flirting with a costumer. She was twirling her hair and giggling stupidly. I rolled my eyes and sat on a stool next to Oliver.

"Hey." I said casually. "What's new?"

"Hey Lils." He said half smiling. "Nothing much."

"Someone's birthday is coming up." I grinned and elbowed his arm. "So, our usual Birthday of all Birthday's Bash?"

"Most definitely." He replied. "We're going to have a blast and don't worry about Miley not being here. We'll have fun."

"Yeah…" I replied. I smiled. "At least one thing will never change. And that's you and me and our Birthday fun."

"That's right!" Oliver exclaimed in his movie trailer voice. "In a world full of crime and injustice, one tradition remains the same." He gave me a high five and I laughed, before turning around and realizing that everyone on the beach was staring at us.

"What…?" I exclaimed to the entire beach. "Someone's gotta liven up the mood around here!"

Everyone gave me a strange look and I blushed. I glanced over and saw Oliver chuckling. I stood up and walked down the beach.

"Hey wait for me!" He called, coming after me. I slowed down and let him catch up.

We walked in silence for a few minutes, just listening to the waves crash in and out. I felt like savoring each moment. I sighed and looked around. I felt truly happy and I didn't know how much longer it would last because, knowing me, I'd be in tears tomorrow. A day in the life of an emotional teen…

**pretty short chapter of boredom, but i can assure you that stuff will start happening... review please.**

**-Andi-**


	9. Fireworks and Memories

Chapter 9

"Come on Lilly. You're going to miss everything!" Oliver shouted from downstairs. I grabbed my camera and shoved it in my beach bag before running down to the living room at full speed.

"Coming!" I shouted, almost tripping. I ran out the door and slammed it behind me before following Oliver out into the hot, setting sun. He pulled my hand as I stumbled down the sidewalk after him.

When we arrived at the beach, it was almost dark and a slight breeze was starting to blow. I looked around at all the tiki torches and camp fires around. People were barbecuing and playing music. I loved the 4th of July.

We found a spot on the beach and spread out our colorful towels. I took a deep breath and sighed happily as I smelled the salty air. I lied down on my towel and sprawled my hair out. I put my arms behind my head and smiled.

"See, we made it." I said, closing my eyes. "And you thought I was going to make us late…"

"Well, you usually do." Oliver replied, taking a seat on his towel next to me. "Want me to go get us some food or something?"

"Sure…" I said, dozing off. It was so easy to fall asleep on the beach. I had soon drifted off to slumber land and started to dream.

I was at my house, only it didn't look quite the same as it currently did. It looked like it did when I was little. But it was decorated in colorful streamers and balloons. As I walked around the house, I found myself looking upward at everything. I couldn't even see the top of the kitchen table. There was a bunch of people gathered around, all my friends from school and their parents. My friends looked about four or five years old. Then I saw my mom. She looked drained and worn out, but younger than she was now. Her face was bright and cheerful despite her exhaustion.

"Go get the door, Sweetie." I heard her say to me. I walked over to the door, tripping over the rug in front of it. You could still see the wood the door was made of. My dad hadn't painted it yet. I reached my hand up, stood on the tips of my toes and grabbed the doorknob, turning it slowly and exposing my best friend Oliver. He was about four or five, as my other friends and I obviously were. He smiled at me, showing off a space in his teeth.

"Hey Lilly." He said, still grinning like mad. He handed me a square box wrapped up in shiny silver paper with a red bow. "Happy Bwirthday."

"Thanks." I choked out. It was hard to talk in this dream. My tiny hands reached out and took the gift before grabbing his hand and pulling him inside. I guided him over to the kitchen table and climbed up onto one of the wooden chairs, holding onto the rungs to keep myself from falling. Oliver climbed up on the chair next to me and sat down. I handed him a birthday hat and he stuck it on his head, messing up his short, dark hair. He smiled again and pointed to the missing space in his teeth.

"Look Lilly. I lost my fwirst tooth." He said, still pointing. I stood on my knees from atop the chair and poked the space with my tiny finger. "Cool, huh?" He asked, while preventing his loose hat from falling off.

I tried to respond but I couldn't. My throat felt tight like I was choking.

"Lilly…Lilly?" Oliver asked, his big, beady eyes staring at me.

My eyes shot open, bringing me back to reality. "Lilly…Lilly? Wake up. You're going to miss the fireworks!"

"Huh?" I mumbled, sitting up and looking around. The beach was completely dark except for the fires and torches around.

"You fell asleep." Oliver said, handing me a hot dog and a Dr. Pepper. "What were you dreaming about anyway? You had this huge smile plastered on your face."

"Huh? Oh, nothing…" I murmured. So much for my happy trip down memory lane… Why did everything have to change? My life was flashing before my eyes and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

I sat up on my towel and took a sip of soda. I looked around and my eyes slowly became accustomed to the dark.

"Look. They're about to start." Oliver said pointing to the empty sky in front of us.

Suddenly I head the familiar loud bang that I'd been hearing for as long as I could remember. I watched anxiously as a beautiful stream of colors shot up into the sky. It made another loud noise and slowly began to fall down, soon followed by another…and another. The loud noise seemed to calm me in a bizarre sort of way. You would think that nerve wracking, loud racket followed by intense, blinding colors lighting up the heavens would be the last thing to make me relax. But I guess I'm just one of the weird people in this world.

I stared up and watched breathlessly, wishing this moment could last forever. There was something about fireworks that just seemed to make me feel better. It was like nothing else in the world mattered right then. You could forget all your problems and just stare up in awe at the beauty of it all. And I loved it.

They went on for a good long time, flashing and shimmering, the gorgeous colors seeming to never cease. I took some pictures of them and Oliver staring up at the sky. I sighed happily and ate my food. They finally stopped and the sky went dark again. I heard cheering and clapping up the beach. I smiled and looked at Oliver.

"Pretty great, huh?" He asked grinning, his hair falling in his eyes.

"You have no idea…"

**Pretty pointless chapter but i just felt like writing about the 4th of July. Oliver's birthday will be the next chapter. i'll try to update tomorrow or at least very soon. my spring break started so i'll have more time. review please.**

**-Andi-**


	10. Demolished Plans

**Well, for some strange reason, i felt like updating twice in one day. Hope it was worth it. and it's long too. Enjoy.**

Chapter 10

I hummed a joyful tune as I poured the chocolate cake batter into a pan. I stuck it in the oven and slammed the door shut, before turning around and collecting myself. I smiled and took off my oven mitts and tie-dye apron, throwing them on the counter beside me.

It was funny how easy it was to bake a cake without destroying the kitchen in the process, when Oliver wasn't here. Hopefully, I wouldn't wreck this one. It was Oliver's birthday cake and it had to be nice. I had to show him that it was possible to cook something without almost burning the house down.

I smiled and walked into the living room, still humming cheerfully. I picked up a big, brown sack labeled "Birthday Fun" with magic marker. Maybe there was a method to Oliver's madness.

The Birthday of All Birthdays Bash was tonight and I was determined to enjoy myself. Nothing could bring me down tonight. I was happy and carefree. The world was sitting in the palm of my hand.

I sat down and took a deep breath. I had Oliver's present all ready. It was an assortment of happy things, a mixed CD with a special cover I made, some old comic books I got off Ebay, a giant bag of bubblegum, and a ton of other stuff. He was a hard person to shop for but I always seemed to manage somehow. It was the thought that counted anyway.

I grabbed the birthday bag and filled it with junk food and movies and other random things for our enjoyment. I seized the sack with his presents and shoved some tissue paper in the top before fastening a colored ribbon to it.

"One hour…" I thought to myself. "One hour to finish the cake."

I finished tying the ribbon and ran upstairs to get ready. It was about six o' clock pm. I reached my room and waded through the piles of junk that seemed to be slowly accumulating. I had actually done some laundry though, so I had some clean clothes to wear. I put on my lucky, black, duct-taped sneakers and brushed my hair.

I looked at myself in the mirror. I flipped my hair this way and that. I tried putting it up but it just didn't look good. I was slowly losing my ability to fix my hair nicely.

I gazed around the area once more and grabbed my beach bag. I dumped the contents out onto the floor and rooted through it. I hadn't emptied it since the 4th of July. I picked up my wrinkled towel covered in sand and threw it across the room.

"Ouch!" I yelled, realizing I had gotten sand in my eye. I ran to the bathroom and flushed it with water, getting my hair and my shirt wet. I stared at myself in the mirror and gave myself an annoyed look. I blew my wet bangs out of my eyes and walked back to my room.

I filled my beach bag with my camera and other stuff I knew I'd need. I was going to enjoy myself. I was sure of it. Oliver was going to have the best birthday ever. Who needed big parties with stupid, screaming people?

Oliver's family had given him their part of his birthday earlier that day. They gave him his presents and their own cake his mother had made. His parents knew very well about our birthday bash and gave in when Oliver told them to go out to dinner. We would have to house to ourselves, except for Oliver's older brother Oscar.

I grabbed my bag and walked downstairs. I threw it in the pile with the bag of birthday fun and the sack with his presents. I sat down on the couch and sighed. Everything was going according to plan. I lied back on the couch and shut my eyes.

"I'll just rest for a minute…" I thought, drifting off to sleep. I awoke to the timer beeping as loud as seemed possible. I jumped up and rubbed my eyes. I looked at the clock.

I had half an hour. I leaped up and scampered to the oven, grabbing an oven mitt and pulling the cake out. It was fine. I sighed and patted my heart. I was going to get done.

I set the cake down the cool and looked around the kitchen. I turned off the oven and poured myself a glass of milk. I hopped up on the counter and bit my lip, staring up at the kitchen ceiling. I hadn't counted the tiles in there yet. I began counting, waiting for the cake to cool. 300. I have too much time on my hands…

I glanced around and then hopped off the counter. I turned the pan upside down and dumped the cake out onto a plate before grabbing a bowl and mixing the icing together. Who wanted crummy icing out of a can anyway? It's filled with nasty artificial preservatives and other junk. But it does taste good. I grabbed a knife and iced the cake. It looked pretty good considering I was never very talented when it came to baking. The chocolate cake covered by the smooth, white icing actually looked professional…if you squinted.

I was soon done icing it and I grabbed a tube of blue icing off the counter. I wrote 'Happy 16th Birthday Oliver!' on the cake in big letters. I stepped back and admired my work. It wasn't bad if I do say so myself… I picked up a box of blue candles and began sticking them in the top.

I wasn't sure why I cared so much. Of course it was my best friends birthday, but I was going a little overboard. I just wanted to make him happy. I wanted to see him grin and watch his hair fall in his eyes. I wanted to see his eyes glisten from the reflection of the burning candles as he blew them out. I wanted to see him close his eyes and wish for something that would make him utterly happy in this crazy world.

He was special and I knew that. Even if others couldn't see it, it was perfectly clear to me. He had this special charm about him that no one else had, at least no one I had ever met. He could always make me feel better.

The time flew by and soon it was time to go. I picked up the cake and put it in a plastic container. I sighed contently as I closed the lid. I was excited. I couldn't wait to sit down and watch movies together and eat cake and watch him open his presents. I wanted to hear about what he got from his parents and how he was feeling.

My stomach lurched and I bit my lip. I had never been so excited to see Oliver before. But for some reason, the feeling wouldn't go away.

I pushed my bangs out of my eyes and grabbed the cake box. I shut the kitchen light off and walked into the living room. I picked up the bag of birthday fun and his present sack and my jacket and my beach bag and slowly stumbled out the door.

"Bye Mom!" I yelled behind me before stepping out into the darkness. I should have thought about how hard it would be to carry all this. I shut the door and walked down the sidewalk. I heard music, loud, blasting music. It was coming from Oliver's house. I bit my lip and wondered to myself what the heck was going on.

I walked up to his house and saw just about the last thing I wanted to see. There were lights on in every room, music blaring as loud as possible. Tons of cars were parked outside. Random people were scattered around everywhere, drinking and laughing and causing chaos. I couldn't believe it. Oliver was having a party.

More than half of the kids didn't even look our age. They looked like they were seniors or maybe even in college already. My stomach rocked and my head started to hurt. I slowly approached the house and walked inside the already opened door. I could barely make it inside with all the stuff in my hands.

People stared at me, giving me dirty looks. I looked around the house, people dancing and trashing Oliver's living room. Random junk lay everywhere. People were making out in every darkened corner. The music seemed to be getting louder and louder. My head hurt and I squinted. I slowly walked into the kitchen, more and more people staring at me like _I_ was the one who didn't belong here. It made me angry to even think that these idiotic outsiders thought they had a right to be here on Oliver's birthday. How could they? How could he? I thought we decided on our peaceful fun. What the heck happened?

I frowned and slammed the junk I had worked so hard on, on the counter. Some guy who looked about nineteen gave me a 'Sup?' and nodded his head toward me. I ignored him and kept looking at everything. It was unbelievable. I couldn't believe whose house I was in. It didn't seem possible. Where the heck was Oliver anyway?

I suddenly saw him pushing his way through the crowd of people. He was looking around in all directions with a worried look on his face. Speak of the devil…

He spotted me and his face lit up as he made his way toward me. I gave him a dirty look and crossed my arms.

"Lilly!" I heard him yell. Well, actually I read his lips. I could barely hear anything over the ear-piercing music. I could barely even hear myself think. He finally reached me and gave me a concerned look. I didn't want to look at him. He disgusted me.

I picked up my stuff and prepared myself to leave. He grabbed me and guided me toward his room upstairs. I would have argued and tried to leave, but I was dying to hear his explanation for this one…

When we finally reached his room, he shut the door behind him only to find two random people kissing on his bed.

"Out…out…" He said, pushing them out the door and shutting it again behind them.

I looked at the ground, waiting for him to say something and bit my lip again. It was becoming an annoying habit. I didn't want to look at him. I knew that as soon as I did, I would see his wonderful face filled with regret and grief, and I'd forgive him in a minute.

"Lilly, I'm so sorry…" He said, looking at me. "I didn't want to have a party. Oscar called all these people."

As much as I didn't want to, I looked up and met his gaze. "Why would your brother have a party now?" I asked him, I could feel the waterworks coming.

"He said that turning sixteen was a big deal and that I had to have a party. I fought with him for hours about it. He said I would enjoy myself and that the party was for me, but I think he just used it as an excuse to invite all his friends. I mean, look at this place! This was never supposed to happen!"

I stared at him, the anger slowly fading. The creases in my forehead from when I was frowning slowly vanished. "Oh." I said glumly, looking down at my feet again. My stomach still hurt and I felt like punching someone. "I have to go."

I opened the door and started to walk away. I stopped and turned back to him. "Here." I said, shoving the cake and presents toward him. "Happy Birthday."

"Lilly, wait!" He called after me. He caught up with me and grabbed my arm. "Please don't go."

"Oliver, I just want to go home and go to bed."

His face looked sad, like a puppy that just got kicked across a room. He sighed. "If…if that's what you really want…" He said, looking down.

"It is…" I said, staring at my lucky sneakers. Some luck… "I don't belong here anyway. Parties aren't my thing. Everyone here gives me mean looks. I wouldn't be able to enjoy myself even if I tried… No one cares about me here…"

He grabbed me by my shoulders and leaned my back up against the wall. Our eyes met and I felt like he was looking right through me. "_I_ care about you…" He whispered so softly I could barely hear. His eyes were so serious it almost frightened me. Oliver wasn't the most serious person in the world.

"I-I know…" I whispered back, softer than he had. "I just need to be alone right now. I…have a lot of thinking to do…"

And with that I left. I walked downstairs, past the screaming people with evil glares, past the destruction of Mrs. Oken's precious things I grew up looking at, past the flashing lights and loud music, and past any chance of happiness the night could have held. I walked outside and into the darkness. I saw the flashing lights of a police car and ran to my house, not looking back for anything in the world.

As I lied crying in the dark that night, curled up with my fuzzy blue pillow, I thought about everything I could possibly think about. And somewhere, between the hate of growing up, the hate of change, and the best recipe for fried chicken, I realized why things like alone time with Oliver, especially on his birthday, meant so much to me.

But it was so weird how it came up all of a sudden. Just this morning the thought never even crossed my mind, and now, I was announcing it to myself. I loved Oliver. He cared about me. He actually cared.

I know it sounds weird to say it like that, but out of all the boys I've dated, which isn't very many anyway, they never _really_ cared. Now that I think about it, there was always the feeling that they were holding something back, that they didn't really want to open up to me and tell me what they were thinking.

Oliver cares. I repeated it over and over in my head. Oliver cares. He said so. And he did care. I felt one last tear rolling down my cheek as I closed my eyes. Sometimes it feels good to cry, even when you're not completely sad.

Oliver cares. Oliver cares about everything. I fell asleep and dreamed about tomorrow. He'd come bounding through the door with his classic grin and his messy hair falling in his eyes. Something had to be done about that boy…

**Well, tell me what you think. Send those reviews in. :)**

**-Andi-**


	11. The Car, the Invite and the Feelings

**Here's the next chapter. Sorry i didn't update for awhile. Hope you like it. It's longer than usual.**

Chapter 11

Everything was bizarre by the next day. I awoke with a feeling of utter depression and felt drained of all energy I had had the day before. I arose from my bed and made my way down the hall, dragging my feet the entire way. I felt limp and insubstantial.

I tried my hardest not to think about _him. _I knew if I did, I would just feel even worse. I loved the guy, and he'd never even know. I had no intentions of telling him. Sure he's my best friend, but things would never be the same way with us again. Even if he did love me back, which I found highly unlikely at the moment, if we started dating it would change everything that I loved so much about our friendship. I couldn't risk it, no matter how hard it was not to let him know.

I sighed and I got dressed, knowing that at any minute he'd come bounding through the front door with his big grin that I loved so much. I wasn't sure how I was going to be able to take it.

I finished getting dressed, my heart pounding in my chest and my head throbbing. The minutes ticked by. The suspense was killing me. I wished he would just come already and put me out of the misery of having to wait. I looked at myself in the mirror, the huge bags under my eyes, my face as white as a ghost. I looked sickly. It almost made me actually sick. Just then the doorbell rang.

My stomach flopped and I slowly made my way downstairs, trying to slow my breathing down to normal. I composed my face before opening the door and exposing the guy responsible for me almost hyperventilating.

"Hey," He said, smiling softly. "How do you feel?"

"Fine," I responded, trying to make my expression look tranquil. Just seeing his face at that moment was enough to make my legs almost give out from under me.

"Um, are we ok…?" He asked, looking at me sympathetically with his big, brown eyes. Why didn't he just tear my heart out?

"Yeah, everything's fine," I said quietly. I forced a convincing smile out of myself and nodded.

"Are you sure, Lils. 'Cause I'm really sorry about everything that happened last night. I want to make it up to you."

"It's fine," I repeated. It almost killed me to say it again. "I don't want to talk about it anymore. Promise me you won't mention it again. Let's just have things go back the way they used to be."

"But I— "

"Promise me," I said sternly.

"Ok, I promise," He said reluctantly.

"Now what do you want to do today?" I asked, hoping to get his mind off the incident.

"Um, well actually, there's something I wanted to show you." He grinned making his hair fall in his eyes as they glistened. I almost threw up right there. Apparently love sickness does exist.

"What is it?" I asked, trying my hardest to concentrate on what he was saying instead of staring at him intently.

"Come with me…" He took a red handkerchief out of his pocket and tied it over my eyes before guiding me out the door. His hand touching my shoulder sent goose bumps down my arms. My stomach lurched and my heart rate picked up again.

I could feel the humidity in the air and smell the newly cut grass all around us. I took a deep breath and tried to forget the fact that I was crazy for the person standing right next to me.

He finally stopped and took off my blindfold.

"Ta-da!" He exclaimed, throwing his arms out to the side.

"Wow Oliver, you got a car?"

"Yep. I paid for part of it with the money I've been saving up and my parents paid for the rest. It's used of course, and a little beat up, but it's in great shape!" He said patting the door. A piece of paint chipped off and floated down to the sidewalk.

"Nice," I said, staring at the beat up, red Mustang.

"Right this way madam…" He said, placing his hands out to the side where the car sat parked. He took my hand and guided me into the passenger seat before tipping a make believe hat.

I rolled my eyes, and folded my hands in my lap, trying to calm my nerves. He walked around the car and got into the drivers seat before turning the key and letting the old engine roar to life.

"Seatbelt," He said pointing to my lap. "Buckle up…click it or ticket… arrive alive…"

"Ok, ok…" I grouched, putting on my seatbelt. I sighed.

We glided down the street, the wind twisting my hair as it blew behind me. He looked so confident behind the wheel, completely relaxed and at ease. I was dreading the day I got my license. I was always so edgy when I drove. He turned slightly to smile at me.

"Where to?" He asked.

"Wherever..." I mumbled, looking at the things passing by.

"'Wherever' is not going to cut it, Lilly. I messed up yesterday and the very least I could do is take you somewhere. Now name a place."

I sighed. "The beach, I guess…" I trailed off, still not looking away from the scenery.

"To the beach then," He declared, taking two rights, being careful to come to a complete halt at every stop sign. I wondered how long his careful driving was going to last before he'd start racing off at full speed, trying to kill himself like all the other teenage boys.

"What year is this?" I asked, looking back at him for the first time.

"2009," He said, smirking.

I rolled my eyes. "I _mean _what year is the car?"

"68'," He said, biting his lip and drumming his fingers on the steering wheel as he waited for an old lady to cross the street going 0.001 miles an hour.

"Huh," I murmured, glancing at the old glove compartment with things falling out of it. I tried to shut it and it fell open, making me realize why it had been open in the first place.

"Here we are," He said, grinning. He pulled up into a parking space and cut the engine. The wind picked up speed and you could hear the ocean waves crashing in and out.

I opened my door and stepped out, my head throbbing and my legs wobbly. Was I going to feel like this the rest of my life? I touched my head and closed my eyes. I felt like I was going to faint.

"You ok, Lils?" He asked, walking over to me. "You don't look so good."

"I'm fine," I insisted. "Just a little tired is all…"

"Really? You slept till noon."

"I need all the sleep I can get when you show up and drag me places against my will."

"Good point," He admitted. He put one hand on my shoulder and we walked over to _Rico's._

My vision started to get blurrier. I felt like I was running a fever. We sat down on the stools and I leaned up against the counter.

"You sure you're ok?" He asked again. "We could go back. I shouldn't have made you come with me…"

"No, I'm fine. Just tired I said."

He shrugged, looking worried and unsatisfied with my response. He ordered himself a soda and me a banana milkshake. He knew they were my favorite.

"It'll make your stomach feel better," He said, pushing it toward me. How did he know my stomach was in knots?

"Thanks…" I said, taking a sip. I sighed and closed my eyes. I took a deep breath of the salty air and tried to relax, contemplating my thoughts and sudden ailments that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

I couldn't go on like this. It just wasn't healthy. I couldn't live every day in denial, pretending my feelings for him didn't exist. But what was I supposed to do? I didn't even understand why just yesterday Oliver was my goofy best friend and today I was almost collapsing to the ground when I thought about him, which was all the time. It didn't make any sense.

I sighed and drank more of my milkshake. It did make me feel a little better. My thoughts were interrupted by a group of girls our age approaching us.

"Hey, I'm Sydni," One of the girls said smiling. She was wearing a tight, short jean skirt and tank top. She flipped her blonde hair and flashed a pearly white grin of perfection. I wanted to puke. The rest of the group looked similar, crammed into clothes three sizes too small.

"So, my friends and I are having a party tonight…" she continued. "And my friend Abby here, wanted me to ask you to come." She smiled again and nodded to her right. Abby was just as flawless as Sydni, her dark brown hair fluffy and free of split ends, her eyes sparkling in the sunshine, her perfect figure displayed by the tight choice of clothing she wore. My stomachache came charging back, this time with revenge for being so easily defeated the first time. I wished they would just get out of here.

"Um, well, I'm not sure if Lilly and I are up for a party anytime soon…" Oliver said, glancing back at me.

"Oh, I was talking to you, but she can come too if you want…" Sydni said. I could just hear the trace of displeasure in her voice as she spoke.

"Well, I'm not going without Lilly," Oliver said. "And I don't think she' s up for it."

"No, it's fine," I said, opening my mouth for the first time, if you don't count drinking my milkshake. "You go and have fun."

"Nah, I'm not going to leave you sitting at home tonight all by yourself."

"It's ok, Oliver. Really," I urged him, getting more annoyed by the second.

"I'm not going without you…" He said again. I could tell that the posse of perfect pretties was getting a little annoyed. They'd leave and Oliver would miss something he probably wanted to do because of me.

"Fine, I'll go," I said. "If it's the only way you will."

"Great. We'll be there," He said, turning back to the girls. Abby batted her eyelashes covered in heavy makeup and winked at Oliver. She took his hand and slipped a piece of paper into it with her address on it before closing his hand. Her nails were extremely long and pointy and painted a shiny, pink color. I wouldn't want to come across her near a squeaky chalkboard.

My hands tightened into fists. How could I let this happen? I cared about what Oliver wanted. That's how. No matter how much pain it caused me, I had to do what he wanted. It went along with the whole friendship thing, kind of goes without saying…

Sydni raised her hand in the air, snapped her fingers and turned around, flipping her hair as her posse followed behind her.

I stuck my tongue out at her as she walked away, closing my mouth quickly when Oliver turned to face me.

"Ow!" I moaned.

"What happened?" He asked, a confused expression on his face.

"Nothing. I just bit my tongue is all…" I said squinting, waiting for the pain to go away. I finished my milkshake and my tongue started to stop hurting. I yawned and sighed as I looked around the beach.

"Are you sure you want to go to that party tonight? Oliver asked me, taking a drink of his soda.

"Oliver, I said it was fine, didn't I?"

"I know, but we just had that huge fiasco happen last night because of a party. I thought you hated them."

"I do, but you don't completely, just for your birthday. We're going, ok? And I thought I told you not to mention last night anymore."

"Sorry…" He mumbled looking past my left shoulder to a kid playing Frisbee with his dog. "Anywhere else you want to go?"

I sighed. "Nah, just take me home."

"Suit yourself then," He said, standing up from the counter. He reached out his hand and I handed him my milkshake cup. He tossed it in the trashcan and began walking back to the car.

When I stood up my legs felt even wobblier than they had when I left the car less than ten minutes ago. I gripped the side of the counter and steadied myself.

"You ok?" He asked turning back to me. He put his arm around my back and walked me to the car.

"I'm fine," I insisted.

He held the door open for me and I sat down inside, looking at the slightly ripped black interior. I remembered my seatbelt this time and fastened it without saying a word.

He got in and started the motor. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath as he backed out of the parking space and headed off down the street. The wind blew my hair again and it began to tangle. The wind blowing in my face gave me a satisfying rush nonetheless.

"You don't like those girls very much, do you?" He asked out of nowhere.

"What gave it away?" I asked absentmindedly.

"The little daggers in your eyes," He said, chuckling. "Your face gives everything away…"

"Almost everything…" I mumbled to myself.

"You know, we don't have to go," He said trailing off.

"Oliver, I _know_ that already. You've said that a million times. We're going and that's final," I grumbled, crossing my arms.

"Ok, ok…" He said taking his hands off the wheel for a second.

You know I'm going to let you drive this when you get your license next month, Lilly," He said, changing the subject.

"Oh joy…" I mumbled, looking at the street. "And who says I'm getting my license anyway?"

"Of course you're getting it, Lils. Even if I have to strap you to the roof and take you there myself."

I sighed. "Thanks," I muttered.

We arrived at our houses and he pulled into his driveway. I opened my door and stood, still feeling lightheaded. I staggered around the car and headed toward my house.

"Do I need to see you to the door?" Oliver asked chuckling.

"That won't be necessary…" I said, smiling dimly.

He laughed, grinned, his hair fell in his eyes… you know the drill.

I smiled at him, hoping he would soon become oblivious to my sudden strange behavior.

I stepped into my house, taking a deep breath as I slowly climbed the stairs to my room.

"Hey Honey," My mom said cheerfully. "You ok? You look kind of sick."

"I'm fine. Just tired."

"Ok…" She responded, the concern easy to hear in her voice. "What did you do today?"

"Oliver drove me to the beach," I replied, turning around to face her.

"Oh yes, Olivia told me Oliver was getting a car," She said.

"When did you talk to Mrs. Oken?" I asked.

"Just this morning. You were sleeping. I don't know why you're sleeping in so much lately. You don't stay up that late, do you?"

"No… I don't know why. I'm just tired. Oh, can I go to a party tonight with Oliver?"

"I suppose so. But I thought you didn't like parties, especially after what happened last night…"

"How do you know about last night?"

"I just said I talked to Olivia this morning," Mom said. "She told me all about Oscar throwing a party. And then the police showed up… Let's just say Oscar isn't leaving the house anytime soon."

"Huh," I said, biting my lip. "Well, I'm going to go do…something…" I said, turning back around.

"Do you want me to make you a sandwich?" Mom asked.

"No, that would just remind me that I'm getting my license soon."

"And how would it do that…?" Mom asked, looking more confused by the second.

"I…don't know…" I replied wearily. "I think I need to go lie down…"

**Review please. Party next chapter. **

**-Andi-**


	12. One of Them

**Um, do I even need to go into the huge, boring explanation of why I haven't updated in so long? Between finals and just the way I've been feeling lately everything has been just blah... Plus I just lost track of time. To me it feels like only a couple of weeks. But anyway, enjoy the next chapter.**

Chapter 12

I opened the door to my room, revealing the mounds of junk I'd forgotten existed in the last hour. I waded to my bed and flopped down on it before letting out a huge sigh of relief. I couldn't stand people's constant questions. They were driving me mad.

I rolled over and stared at the ceiling again, then around my room, at my clock, at my currently pink nails. I'd change them to match my mood, but then Oliver would know something was bothering me, and I couldn't have that.

I looked at the clock again. 5:32. I moaned and stood up, before wading back over to my closet and throwing the doors the rest of the way open. A few more things came flying out, almost hitting me in the head. I looked at the few outfits still remaining on the hangers. They were all the reject clothes, the ones that I hadn't wanted to wear enough to take them out of the closet. If I liked them, they'd be on the floor by now.

I flipped through the racks of clothes, glancing at old, ugly shirts and dressy skirts my mom had bought me because they "would look so cute on me". I didn't like looking dressy. If I tried I'd end up looking like those girls at the beach. And that was the last thing I wanted, wasn't it?

I continued rummaging though the hangers, until I came to the very last thing in my closet, something I hadn't worn since my great aunt's funeral a year ago, and never planned to wear again.

I picked up the black dress and examined it, running my fingers over the soft material. It was knee-length and had thin straps leading down to its rounded neckline. It was something I'd never be caught in anywhere ever again. But why not? Today was a day for experimenting, living on the edge. What did I care anyway? After the last couple of months, nothing should surprise me anymore.

I slipped out of my jeans and tank top, and threw on the dress, my stomach starting to hurt again. I looked in the mirror and wrinkled my nose. I looked just how I'd imagined, like those idiotic girls at the beach. I turned around in the mirror, staring at myself with a critical eye.

I dug through the bottom of my closet, pitching things here and there. I threw my tennis racket and it hit my lamp, knocking it off my desk and onto the floor with a loud crash. I continued digging and found the pair of black heels that went with it. I slipped them on, before turning around and coming face to face with my mother.

"Honey, I heard a crash. Are you--" -She squealed right about here- "You're wearing your dress!"

I bit my lip and tried to think of an excuse for my sudden urge to play dress up. My mind quickly scanned the possibilities in a matter of seconds as my mother stared me down, her wide eyes of pleasure.

"Um, I…just wanted to see if it still fit…?" I said, biting my lip again.

"Of course it still fits! Oh, Lilly Sweetheart, you look gorgeous! Are you wearing that to the party?"

"What? No!" I said quickly, shaking my head.

"But why? You look so wonderful. I could do your hair and your makeup and…"

"Mom, please don't. I mean, I just don't know…"

"Oh, it's alright Lilly. Go ahead and change. I just thought it would be fun, you know? You never did like dressing up anyway…"

I sighed and bit my lip again. My stomach rocked back and forth. As much as hated make-up and dresses and high heels and anything that those nasty back-stabbing girls wore, I suddenly felt like doing something that would make everybody double take, something that would make me feel like a different person, just for one day, something that wasn't me.

I wanted to morph into someone I hated, turn myself into one of _them_, the very people I despised more than anything, the materialistic, vicious, "perfect", little snobs that got everything they wanted.

What would it hurt to become them for one day? It wouldn't even be a whole day, just a few hours maybe. I just had to do this one thing, and see the difference between my world and theirs, to just experience what it's like to have guys falling at your feet with just the snap of your fingers. I didn't want to be Lilly tonight. And I made my mind up then that I wasn't going to be.

XXX

Music was blasting as my taxi pulled up to the party. I had told Oliver that my mom was taking me and I'd told my mom that Oliver was taking me. I stepped out and stood up, the cold air rushing over my body. They were so easy to fool sometimes.

I approached the house. It was pretty big, but what did I expect? She lived in a ritzy neighborhood. My black heels clicked and I walked up her red brick steps to the front door. I was surprised I could even walk in heels. I'd never had much practice.

I rang the doorbell, something that probably wasn't necessary considering all the people coming in and out at random. Some preppie jock opened the door and let me in. He had a beer in one hand and a cigarette in another.

"What's up?" He yelled over the music. "I'm Dave."

"L-Violet." I choked out. I wasn't going to be Lilly tonight, so why not be some other kind of dumb flower?

"Want to go upstairs?" He asked bluntly.

I sighed. What was that, five seconds? Get out the Guineas Book of World Records.

"How about I go upstairs and you go to hell?" I replied smugly before pulling the classic hair-flip move and parading away, my black heels clicking on the hardwood floor. This crap wasn't so hard. If I could do it, anybody could. But then again, most girls like that probably would have gone upstairs with "Dave". There's a future delinquent.

"_Off to mingle…"_ I thought as I began walking around the huge house. I walked past a mirror and almost jumped when I looked at myself. I looked scary. I had on a lot of makeup: eyeliner, mascara, lipstick, the whole enchilada. My hair was curled with half of it pulled back. I'd ended up doing everything myself. I wanted to go overboard. I wanted to look like them tonight. That was the whole point. Mother Dearest wouldn't have understood that.

I was debating whether or not to look for Oliver. He might not want to see me like this. I never knew what to expect sometimes. I continued to walk around, smiling at random people. I saw some people I knew from school. They looked right at me. Didn't recognize me. This plan was gold. It was working so well, that I began to feel sick because I knew that if things were going well, something always seemed to ruin it. I had to be careful.

The music began hurting my ears, the lights hurting my eyes. I finally stopped walking and just leaned back against a wall. I finally spotted Oliver. He was in a big group of people sitting on two couches. He was smiling and laughing. It made me sick. The dumb girl named Abby that invited him was sitting next to him, gazing at him as she took in every word he said.

I wanted to gag. She was wearing a pink halter-top and a short black skirt. Her face was caked with makeup. I felt like running out of there. But then I remembered that I wasn't supposed to be myself today.

I noticed Oliver looked around every once in a while. Probably looking for me, but you can never be too sure. I was about to walk up to the group, when another jock with huge muscles walked up to me.

Now, as hard as I've tried to, I can't for the life of me remember what his name was. So we'll just call him Dumbo.

"Hey. What's up?"

"Nothing much." I said, trying not to act like myself as much as possible. "I'm Violet."

"Dumbo." He said. He flashed a grin.

That's when he started off telling me about his whole life story, his interests, hobbies, every touchdown he's ever scored, taking pride in his accomplishments. That boy would gloat till the cows came home.

After about two or three minutes of never-ending cruel and unusual punishment, I stopped paying any attention. I just smiled and nodded occasionally. I kept peeking back at Oliver. He seemed to fit right in with this crowd. Maybe he only saves his dorkiness for Miley and I to have to deal with.

Abby wouldn't take her eyes off him. She kept flipping her hair and whispering in his ear. She was the kind of girl you just wanted to run over with an eighteen-wheeler.

The minutes ticked on. I finally saw Abby lean over and kiss him. He kissed her back. This is what I had been waiting for. I'd been dreading it for the longest time. I knew it would happen. It was the kind of thing you really didn't want to see because it would hurt you, but you can't look away. It's like when you drive past a car crash on the side of the road and, as much as you don't want to, you can't help staring the entire time.

My eyes were glued to them. I couldn't look away. The image of them was now permanently embedded in my brain forever. It made my stomach twist and turn and my head pounded more than it had ever before.

It was the weirdest feeling, mainly because I didn'tknow _what_ I was feeling. I should have felt upset and ready to run off crying, or even angry and want to go off and plan some sort of revenge. But I just stood there.

Well, Dumbo finally noticed I wasn't really listening.

"Violet…Violet, hello…?"

"Come on. Let's go sit over there." I said. I grabbed him by the shirt collar and dragged him over to the circle of people where Oliver sat. I pranced on over to the group and sat down. I just wondered if Oliver would even recognize me.

He glanced at me, kind of did a double take. Then shook his head and continued in the group's conversation. Thirty seconds later he looked back, this time he stared longer before exclaiming, "Lilly…?"

"Took you long enough." I mumbled.

He had this incredibly shocked look on his face, like he wasn't sure what to think of it. His face was hard to read. I just looked at him. I wasn't even sure what I'd wanted his reaction to be. I wasn't sure of anything anymore.

"What are you talking about? That's Violet you idiot." Dumbo said proudly.

I rolled my eyes.

"Uh, no. I think I know what my best friend's name is! I've sure known her longer than you have!" Oliver yelled.

"Yeah right. Go take a hike!" Dumbo yelled, standing up. Oliver stood up and Dumbo pushed him. "You want to take this outside, punk? She's here with me."

I couldn't believe this was happening. This was just about the stupidest thing that they could be fighting about and of course, that's the main topic of discussion. I gave them an exasperated look, but they didn't see me. They were too busy pushing each other.

I stood up and pushed myself between them.

"Shut up! Both of you! I lied, ok? My name is Lilly and I've known Oliver since pre-school! But I'm here with Dumbo, so Oliver, you can go suck face with your new girlfriend!" I shouted.

I grabbed Dumbo's collar again and dragged him across the room. He had a shocked look on his face. I finally glanced back at Oliver. He had a really confused/annoyed look on his. Boys…I swear.

"Let's go dance!" I shouted over the music. I dragged poor Dumbo, too confused to do anything but listen to me, over to where everyone was dancing. It was a slow song. Just perfect. He put his hands around my waist. I sighed and wrapped my arms around his neck. My stomach kept hurting, but it wasn't just because of Oliver. I felt like I was going to puke. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that flying elephant boy was a little too close for comfort.

But what was I supposed to do? This was the whole point. I waited until Oliver was looking right at me before grabbing Dumbo's face and kissing him. It was pretty long. I wanted to make Oliver squirm.

Kissing him was pretty much like kissing a dirty toilet brush covered in peanut butter. Let's not go into detail.

I saw Oliver out of the side of my eye. He looked uncomfortable and annoyed. Mission accomplished.

**A/N: I'll try to update soon. I promise. I'm out of school now so I should have time. Review please.**

**-Andi**


	13. Damn Him

**Sigh. I'm really sorry about not updating. I was on vacation almost all of June and while I was there I was working on oneshots for the Loliver post-a-thon and finishing Stranded Lovers. Anyway, here it is. Yeah.**

Chapter 13

The dizziness was taking over, it seemed. The room was spinning. The faces of the people around me seemed to blur together. This whole thing was crazy. It was official; I had gone insane.

My vision slowly became clearer and I realized that I was leaning completely against Dumbo's body. He was keeping me from hitting the ground without even realizing it.

"Darn everything." I mumbled to myself.

I peered over at Oliver. He continued to talk to his date Abby, but I sensed he was still annoyed that I had kissed Dumbo. I smiled evilly. I still felt like making him suffer. He deserved it, I thought. I knew that a lot of what happened was my fault too, but I didn't care. I was hurting and it didn't seem fair that I couldn't have a good time and he could.

The music seemed to be getting louder. I could feel my eyes hurting and the pain working its way to the rest of my head. My stomach continued to knot up and I bit my lip.

"Um, I'll be right back." I choked out, running across the room. I pushed past people and tried my hardest not to trip in my heels. I found the nearest bathroom and darted inside before slamming the door behind me and locking it.

I put my back up against the door and slid down to the tiled floor beneath me. The tears fell as I stared at the bright yellow shower curtain. I concentrated on the pattern and tried to calm myself. My stomach churned and I walked over on my knees to the toilet before throwing up. "What the hell is wrong with me?" I wondered aloud.

I slowly stood up and realized that I was shaking uncontrollably. I turned on the faucet and cupped my hands under it, catching the water so I could wash out my mouth. I looked at myself in the mirror and felt even worse. Between my pale face, my ruffled hair and the mascara running down my cheeks, I was a mess.

I heard a bang on the door and jumped. "Lilly? Lilly, are you in there?"

Oliver.

Oh joy.

I sighed. "Maybe…" I might as well spare him the time of questioning where I was. Idiot.

"Lilly, are you crying? What's wrong?" He yelled over the music. I could hear the worry in his voice. Damn him. He wasn't supposed to care. I was mad at him.

"Lilly, let me in." He continued. "What happened? Did that jerk do something?"

"No." I grouched. "Nothing happened. I'm fine. Go away." I knew he didn't believe me. You could tell I was crying just by my voice, no matter how hard I tried to sound like everything was fine.

"If you don't open this door I'm coming in after you. This is a simple lock, Lil. I could open it with a bobby pin. And, oh look! Tons of girls with nicely-done hairdos just filled with bobby pins!"

I scowled. "Stupid, stupid, stupid…" I mumbled. He was bluffing. He couldn't open the door. It had to be more complex than that. But I was still worried. I grabbed a tissue and wiped the mascara-filled tears from my face. I scanned the bathroom for a way out. My eyes fell on the window above the toilet. My escape.

I didn't hear Oliver anymore, so I assumed he had gone off on a never-ending quest for the sacred bobby pin. I kneeled on the toilet and cracked open the window. A cool breeze poured though and chilled my bare shoulders. I was on the first floor, so I wouldn't plummet to my death, not that it didn't sound like a good idea at that particular moment.

I tour the screen out and threw it on the floor of the bathroom. It made a loud clang and left a black scar on the floor. I slowly boosted myself through and landed headfirst in a bush outside. The darn thing seemed like a curse at the time, but it probably saved me from a serious head injury. I stood up and brushed myself off, looking up from where I'd jumped. The window had been higher up than I'd estimated.

I saw a bunch of people outside, but not anywhere near me. I bolted through the yard and ran down the sidewalk in the direction of my house, just hoping that no one noticed me.

I hadn't realized how far away my house was until I had been walking for what seemed like forever without a sign of it. My feet hurt and everything else hurt even more. I had to be sick; maybe I had some serious disease and was slowly and painfully dying. If that was my fate, why did it have to drag out so long, causing me to go insane in the process?

I heard a loud crash of thunder and a few minutes later the rain began. It started out lightly sprinkling but soon turned to a heavy downpour. I dragged myself along for about five more minutes before surrendering to the pain and sogginess. I sat down on the edge of the sidewalk and sighed before burying my head in my hands and starting to cry again.

So this brings us back to where I started this story. Me, sitting on the edge of the curb, the rain pouring down, the mascara running down my face. Yeah, that was pretty much the turning point. This was just about all I could take. I didn't know how much more could possibly happen to make me feel any worse.

That stupid boy. This was all his fault. Why on earth did I have to fall in love with him? Why couldn't we just be best friends and leave it at that?

I kept crying and soon slumped over on my side. I just lied there on the sidewalk, the rain pounding on me. I turned over onto my back and looked up at the black sky. Raindrops kept falling in my eyes. I closed them, and tried to ignore everything, not that I expected it to work.

To this day I find it surprising that I didn't get kidnapped or mugged or something. I would have been so easy to take advantage of. I could barely move. But I was on one of those quiet streets, the ones where hardly anyone drives or walks by at night. I tried to sleep, and was so tired, that I almost managed.

Now I know what you're thinking… poor, little, pathetic Lilly, practically a drowned rat in the middle of all this chaos and despair. I hate people feeling sorry for me.

I heard a car coming closer. It screeched to a stop near me, and I didn't even bother trying to open my eyes. I was almost slightly relaxed and if I moved, it would ruin everything. I heard the car door open and then slam shut, followed by the sound of frantic footsteps coming closer.

"Lilly!"

Oliver.

Oh joy.

"Lilly, what happened? Are you ok? What are you doing?" He shouted, running over and kneeling beside me. I opened my eyes and looked up at him. His clothes and hair were almost completely soaked already. Drops of water dripped from his hair and into my face.

What the hell was I supposed to say? I just lied there and considered the possibilities. _Oh, hey. Ya know, hanging out, lying on the sidewalk. People do it all the time. Oh, my appearance? Yeah, I got mauled by a bear. You see those trees way__over there? Yeah, he went that way. No bears in these parts? Oh, well he must have been some guy in that gorilla costume you wore last Halloween. I'd follow him if I were you. Who knows how many other pedestrians he could attack before sunrise? _

"Lilly, answer me!" He continued. He propped me up and laid my head in his lap. He touched my face with his hand and it sent shivers down my spine. "You're not dying, are you?"

_Idiot._ _Crazy, idiot that I adore for no darn reason except everything._

"So, did you ever find a bobby pin?" I finally asked. My voice sounded raspy and I didn't realize until then how dry my throat was.

"Yeah, yeah I did. Lilly, why did you crawl out that window? And what happened to you? You look horrible."

_You look horrible._ Not exactly what I imagined my Prince Charming to say. I took a deep breath and tried to relax once more.

"I think I'm sick." I said, which wasn't even a lie.

"Well, why on earth didn't you come tell me? I would have helped you get home!" He didn't wait for me to answer. He just stood up and pulled me up with him. He guided me to his car and I sat down inside.

The immediate silence was strange, going from constant rain to almost total peace. I could just barely hear it pelting against the car. He quickly walked around and hopped in the driver's seat.

"Lilly I swear, you do the craziest things…" He said, turning on the windshield wipers. "I can't believe you sometimes. When I drove up and saw you lying there, I thought someone had gone and killed you. Seatbelt."

I sighed. I had to tell him. This, whatever it was, couldn't go on. I buckled my seatbelt and leaned back against the seat. My ailments showed no pity and continued to make me miserable. My stomachache got worse every time he came near me. My head pounded with the rhythm of the rain on the roof. I couldn't stand this. I really did have to tell him, not this minute or anything, but very soon. I would like very much to live to at least twenty, if that's possible. It's not like I'm not off to a good start.

He handed me a tissue. "Here, you've got makeup running down your face."

I took it and wiped my face before sighing miserably.

"Why did you dress like that anyway?" He asked, not taking his eyes off the dark road only lit by his headlights. "I can barely recognize you."

I didn't answer. I didn't know what to say. Hell, I never knew what to say. He didn't ask again. He must have figured that I didn't want to tell him, which was true. We pulled into my driveway and he got out. My heart pounded as he walked around the car and opened my door. I took his hand and he brought me to the front door where I was greeted by my very frantic mother who, let's be honest, was a nervous wreck.

"Lilly, what on earth happened?" She exclaimed, almost making me wish I hadn't come home.

I started to speak, but Oliver cut me off. "Lilly felt really sick so we left early. I parked too far away and we had to walk in the rain. Then she fell down."

Mom sighed. "So you got sick from the rain?"

"No, Mom." I said in a rough whisper. "I think I've been sick for awhile."

"Then why on earth didn't you say so?" She shrieked. I sighed. Why did everyone feel the need to yell at me and ask 'why on earth' I did something? Things were hard enough as it was.

"Well, I'm taking you to the doctor." She declared, running to get her purse.

"Mom… no…" I croaked.

"Nonsense, Lilly. If you felt sick and you still went out tonight, and then got drenched in the pouring rain, you need to go to the doctor."

"But it's almost one in the morning!" I yelled, before launching into a coughing fit. That really put her over the edge. There was no getting out of going now.

I went up to my room and took a shower. The steam soothed me for a brief time and I sighed, telling myself that everything was going to be ok. How did everything get so screwed up? When I got out of the shower, I threw up again. Things just kept getting better and better.

The three of us grabbed umbrellas and we drove down to the emergency room. My mom commanded me to wrap up in a blanket the whole time. The silence in the car was nerve-wracking. I felt horrible. On top of the pain of my stomach and head and everything else, I was horribly embarrassed. Oliver wasn't supposed to see me like this. How could I have allowed this to happen?

"Mom, this isn't an emergency! What are we doing here?" I exclaimed in my hoarse tone.

"Lilly, I'm not waiting until morning to take you, all right? We're going now. Now stop straining your voice."

I rolled my eyes and kept telling myself that things could be worse. Oliver didn't say anything. He just kept looking at me. He wouldn't stop staring. It's like he thought if he didn't watch me, I would shrivel up, fall apart and die on the sidewalk in the rain.

* * *

"Come in." I rasped from my spot on the plastic, green cot.

Oliver opened the door and his head appeared. "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better. Where's my mom?"

"Talking to the doctor. My parents are out in the waiting room. Your mom called them 'cause she thought I was out in the rain as long as you. I'm fine, obviously. Lilly, why did you have to go running off?"

"Oliver, I don't want to talk about it, ok?"

"Just like you didn't want to talk about the other party either. Lil, talking always makes you feel better."

I groaned. My head wouldn't stop pounding. Would the darn aspirin just kick in already? Oliver sat down in a chair and fiddled with a cabinet door. He opened and shut it over and over. _Bang…bang…bang… _Then he started tapping his foot on the floor. _Tap…tap…tap…bang…tap…bang…tap…bang…ta-_

"Would you shut up?" I yelled, hurting my voice. "Sheesh, you're killing me here."

"Sorry…" He mumbled, looking at the ground. His hair fell in his eyes, and he looked utterly worried about me. Damn him. He's supposed to give me a reason to hate his guts. I had to stop loving him or I'd have to tell him the truth.

I practiced possible scenarios in my head. _Oliver, I'm deeply, madly in love with you! I long for you to rush to my side and pledge your devotion to me forever!_

Yeah… that'll happen.

Mom walked in. She looked stressed, but not like she was going to have a heart attack or anything. Good sign. She sat down in a chair next to Oliver and began.

"Lilly, the doctor said that you caught some sort of bug the other day and that's why you were feeling so sick. And then tonight, going out in the rain without a jacket for I don't know how long, made it worse. But he also said that…certain things going on in teen's lives, that stress them out, cause them to get…well, depressed. And that sometimes when you feel bad on the inside, you can actually cause yourself to get physical ailments."

I couldn't believe this. She was asking me if I was depressed… and in front of Oliver, of all people! Stupid diagnosis. They didn't know what they were talking about.

"Mom, I'm fine." I said, sitting up. "I'm just sick, ok?"

She nodded and dropped the subject, even though I could tell she didn't want to. Maybe it was because Oliver was there. I slowly stood up and said I desperately wanted to leave this 'evil, unforgiving place that is the ER.'

Falling asleep was difficult that night. It was nice to be warm and dry after all that had happened, but it wasn't enough to make me feel better. I still felt sick. I didn't feel like throwing up anymore, but my stomach still hurt. I couldn't tell if I was still really sick or just nervous from Oliver. Mom gave me some stupid medicine to take and it helped a little. It made me tired, but my mind just wouldn't rest. It kept racing with thoughts of everything that had happened that day. Normally I'd stare at the clock for hours, but considering it's untimely death, I had to rely on my phone.

I noticed that Miley had called several times in the last couple of days. I'd been having brief conversations with her every once in a while for the last month and a half. I'd never really say much though. I mostly just listened to her tell her exciting stories about the tour and meeting celebrities. Just an occasional 'uh-huh' was enough for her. I really needed to call her back, not that I felt like it lately.

Oliver was taking over my brain and I couldn't stand it. How could he? After all the time we'd been friends, he just had to get inside my head and torture me to death. It'd been his plan from the beginning, to befriend me and then make me fall in love with him. Then, he'd kill me without having to lift a finger. I'd merely fall apart just from not being able to tell him how much I cared about him!

The way my mind works at 3 am.

_Was_ I depressed? I mean, really, what are the symptoms? Could it be that my hate of change could be causing me to feel horrible about it happening all around me? Could it be that I believed Oliver could never love me as anything more than a friend and I felt I had to change myself to make him care? Could it be that I'm silently crying out for help and no one's answering?

Nah.

I turned over and beat my fist into my pillow before finally falling asleep. The whole time I slept, I could hear the little voices telling me to confess.

_Tell him, Lilly… You know you want to…_

"Shut up!" I screamed in my sleep several times. At least, that's what my mom says. She came rushing to my side at least twice that night. I wanted so badly to tell her everything, but I just couldn't. The rain stopped the second time she rushed to my room.

It was about five in the morning when I heard something near my window. I would have turned over to look, but I couldn't make myself budge. I heard fumbling around the garbage in my room and then I sensed him.

I was half asleep but I smiled immensely before wiping it from my face. What was _he_ doing here? I was just starting to feel a little better. It was strange how I could feel such different things when he was around. Part of me wanted him to get lost and part of me wanted him to never leave me as long as I lived. Damn him. How dare he have the power to control me?

"Lilly…" He whispered, making his way through the death trap. I stirred and my heart jumped. I was completely awake by that time. I felt the covers go up and before I knew it, he was lying in my bed with me. Damn him, playing with my emotions like that. Who did he think he was, anyway?

I forced myself to turn over and face him. I wasn't sure of what exactly to say. When I saw his face, all the feelings came rushing back and this time they brought friends. My stomach tossed. "W-what are you doing here?" I whispered.

He sighed and laid his head on my pillow. How dare he taint my pillow with his incredible hair? My pillowcase was now contaminated with his scent. Damn him.

"I think we need to talk about some things…" He started, turning over on his back again. It seemed like he found it hard to talk when he was looking at me.

"Like what?" I asked, biting my lip. I wasn't ready for this. I was supposed to have one night without having to see him again.

"Well… everything. I mean, are you mad at me?"

Was I mad at him? Hell, yeah. But yet, I wasn't. Can you hate someone and love him to death at the same time? I couldn't think of what to say. He sighed and ground his teeth.

"I guess that's a 'yes', huh?" He asked glancing over at me.

"Not necessarily…" I said on the spur of the moment. What exactly did I want him to think?

"Well, then what's wrong? You've been acting really strange lately…" He looked at the wall and fiddled with his hands. "'Cause you know if you were… depressed or something, that you could always talk to me about it…"

I couldn't believe this. Why did people have to put a label on everything? _Depression._ What a stupid, stupid word.

"Oliver, I'm fine." I assured him. "Everything is just great."

"Lilly, you know I'm not that stupid as to believe you're doing great right now."

I scowled and crossed my arms. It was quiet for a minute.

"You don't like those girls from the party at all, do you?" He finally asked.

_Duh. _"No." I said quietly.

"But you still felt like you wanted to fit in with them for one night, so you dressed just like them, didn't you?"

_The nerve of him. _"Maybe." I mumbled.

"And when you saw me there with Abby, it bothered you?"

_Is it that obvious? _"Yeah, I don't like her."

"And when she kissed me, it annoyed you… so you went off and kissed that guy to drive _me_ crazy…"

_Perhaps. _"Don't flatter yourself."

"And then, you couldn't take all the chaos anymore, so you ran to the bathroom to get away from it all…"

_Maybe he's not such an idiot._

"And when I found out you were in there, you crawled out the window and landed in that bush outside where you hit your head and became delusional…."

_Idiot._

"You had it right, up to that point…" I muttered, rolling my eyes. "I did not become delusional. I merely felt like walking home… in the rain."

"And where does collapsing on the sidewalk fit into all this…?" He asked raising his eyebrows.

I groaned. "Oliver, I'm tired. It's hours before I'd normally get up, and I'm sick. Do you think maybe this once you could cut me a break?"

He heaved a sigh. "I just want to talk. Is that so much to ask?"

I paused for a minute as I swallowed and licked my lips. "Why… why did you go to the party with 'Abby'?"

"I don't know… I just thought it was kind of cool to meet a girl who actually liked me."

"Girls like you." I choked out, my heart beating faster.

"Eh, not really…" He said, his eyes glancing around the room. He was so oblivious.

"…Why'd you kiss her?" I asked quietly.

He sighed. "I don't know. I kind of liked her… but not really. She's too perky, annoying, and snobby for me."

I let a small smile escape my lips. He turned to me and I quickly hid it. "So… so you're never going to see her again?"

"Nah."

"Don't you think she's pretty?" My head pounded.

"Sure. But she's not my type. Besides, I can barely see her face through all that makeup anyway…"

I grabbed my fuzzy, blue pillow and held it to my chest protectively.

"So…" He continued. "What was up with you can that one guy?"

"Oh, you mean Dumbo?" I asked. I actually called him Dumbo that time. After all that had happened, there was no way I could remember his name.

"Dumbo?" He asked chuckling.

"Sure. And nothing happened. Kissing him was the pits."

He shook his head and laughed. "You're crazy, you know that?"

I bit my lip and looked at the ceiling. Maybe I was crazy. My stomach continued to ache. Why wouldn't it? He was lying with me in my bed for Pete's sake. Really, is there no boundary line?

"I liked the birthday stuff…" He said quietly, looking at his hands.

"What?" I asked, not paying much attention.

"You know, the stuff you gave me. The cake and the presents… and everything. I'm really sorry we didn't get to have our fun."

How dare he make me feel guilty… without even realizing he was doing it! I knew I had been too hasty running out on him on his birthday. It wasn't his fault his brother threw that stupid party.

"It's ok…" I said. "It wasn't your fault anyway… and I should have stayed, or at least brought you to my house… or something…"

"Nah, it doesn't matter. Besides, you asked me not to talk about it."

"It wasn't right of me to not talk about your birthday." I said quietly. "We should… still celebrate."

"Really?" He smiled faintly. "It doesn't matter, you know. I don't need a big fuss."

"We'll at least do something…" I whispered. My voice was starting to hurt again from talking so much.

"Thanks." He said. "Just wait till your birthday next month…" He grinned evilly. "I'm going to get you up at six."

"Not if I have anything to do with it…" I mumbled, turning over on my back.

"You know…" He said, laughing slightly. "When you were lying on the sidewalk, you had a bunch of twigs in your hair from that bush. And they were sticking up everywhere."

I rolled my eyes. "How did you know there was a bush there anyway? It was too dark to see. That's why _I _fell in it…"

He snickered. "I crawled out the window too."

I sighed. "Figures."

"So, are we good?" He asked turning over to face me again. I couldn't read his expression. His eyes seemed distant like he was deep in thought.

"Yeah." I whispered. "Everything's fine." And everything was fine, at least with our friendship. My heart was pounding out of my chest. Was it ever going to end? I had to tell him, but not right now. I was literally begging for a little longer to collect my thoughts. I wasn't ready. Didn't anyone care? _Tell him, Lilly… You know you want to…_

"Shut up!" I yelled before covering my mouth.

"What…? What did I say?" Oliver asked, looking confused.

"Nothing. Get down. I think my mom's coming…"

I heard her footsteps coming closer. "Lilly, are you alright? You're yelling in your sleep again…"

I pushed Oliver off my bed and he crawled underneath it, barely making it in time. After all, he had to kick all sorts of junk out of the way first.

"Yeah Mom. Everything is just great. Go back to bed…" I said sitting up. I tried to look like I had just woken up less than a minute ago. I pretended to yawn and waved goodbye even though she didn't appear to be leaving.

She came in and sat on the edge of my bed. It sunk down even more than it was with me lying on it. I could just imagine poor Oliver getting squished underneath. I smiled. I hoped he was silently begging for mercy.

"Lilly, you know that if you ever need to talk about anything, I'm here…" She said, laying her hand on top of mine. "And… you'd tell me if something was bothering you, right?"

"Yeah Mom. Stop worrying about me. Everything's fine."

"You keep telling me that. Why do I find it hard to believe?"

"Because life is trying to run us all over." I said smiling softly. "Everything is going to be fine. Everything's great actually."

She smiled vaguely and sighed. She patted my hand before standing up and walking back to her room.

A few moments later, Oliver appeared once more, a sock and something sticky stuck in his hair. He ripped them out as I shook my head and sighed. I lied back down facing away from him.

He flipped the covers back up and got in again. My heart practically beat out of my chest. I thought he was leaving. Maybe he _was_ trying to make me go insane. He lied down and nestled up closer to me than he had before. He enclosed his arms around me from behind and set his chin on my shoulder. I could hear him breathing in my ear. What caused the sudden desire to come so close? He was playing games with me. He had to be. Here I was, ready to have a heart attack and he's playing games.

"What are you doing?" I whispered.

"I just… miss you." He said warily. Damn him.

I gulped and tried my hardest not to let him know how nervous he was making me. I had to force myself not to start trembling.

He took a deep breath and it pounded in my ear. His cheek brushed against mine and I could hear his heart beating rapidly.

"Goodnight, Lilly." He whispered in my ear before jumping up and disappearing out the window and down the drainpipe.

I paused for a moment and tried to figure out what had just happened. Just what was he trying to pull here? I rolled over on my back again and breathed heavily as I stared up at the ceiling. Damn him.

**Yeah... review please. **

**-Andi**


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